The college sports world has been scrambling over the past year as most of the Pac-12 teams have decided to leave the conference. While several factors are at play, money and media deals have been key among them.
And now, after those programs decided to move on, the Group of Five leagues have begun to be affected. The teams left in the Pac-12 have limited options ahead of them. But they may have found a path forward.
Here’s a look at what has happened in the college football landscape and how it has impacted the G5.
Boise State, Fresno State, Colorado State, Utah State & San Diego State Join The Pac-12
Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, Utah State, and San Diego State have announced they are officially going to the Pac-12, beginning during the 2026 season. Gonzaga will also be going to the Pac-12 for all of its sports, which doesn’t include football.
Those moves will likely create a ripple effect for the rest of the FBS. The Pac-12 needs at least one more team to be technically considered a conference, so others will likely become members of the new-look league. The Mountain West is losing some of its top teams and will be searching for candidates to boost its numbers back up.
Pac-12 officials reportedly believe the league can reach a media deal worth more than the Mountain West’s currently, which could be a key reason for these moves.
The Pac-12 is no longer an autonomous league, meaning it had more influence in regards to NCAA decisions and received more money from the College Football Playoff. It’s uncertain if the Pac-12 could regain that status. It’s also unclear if the CFP would go back to six automatic qualifying spots for conference championship winners, as that number decreased to five following the Pac-12 dropping to two teams.
Memphis, USF, UTSA & Tulane To Stay In The AAC
The Pac-12 was reportedly hoping to add some of the top programs in the AAC as well, but now that’s not happening.
Memphis, Tulane, South Florida, and UTSA publicly announced a recommitment to the AAC. That seriously hampers the Pac-12’s expansion efforts.
All four of those schools are located in good markets, and all four of them were in bowl games in 2023. They were logical targets for the Pac-12 aside from travel costs.
Now the question is what other teams might the Pac-12 be considering.
UNLV, Air Force To Remain In The Mountain West
UNLV, Air Force, and the Mountain West’s remaining full-time members have reportedly recommitted to staying in the Mountain West despite interest from the Pac-12 and AAC.
Air Force was reportedly being considered as an addition for the AAC before Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, and San Diego State announced they were going anywhere.
The move would’ve made sense for the Falcons. They could have joined a league with Army and Navy and could have avoided the uncertainty that the Mountain West is looking at. Air Force also doesn’t play too far from Denver, which provides some benefits as well.
Instead, the Falcons as well as programs like UNLV and San Jose State seem to be a part of the Mountain West’s immediate future.
Northern Illinois-Mountain West Conversations Picking Up
Northern Illinois reportedly is strongly considering going to the Mountain West for football and leaving the MAC.
There’s plenty for the Huskies to consider if they’re going to make a change like this.
The ultimate question, as has been the case with basically all conference realignment, has been if moving to a new conference would lead to more money. Though no potential financial arrangements have been widely reported, if NIU were to go to the Mountain West, the Huskies would likely be aiming to make more than they would be by simply staying in the MAC.
Travel would obviously have to be considered as well. Currently, the MAC is one of the most logical conferences in the FBS in terms of geography.
While moving to the Mountain West might put NIU in a more competitive league that could arguably bring the program more notoriety, it would also put the football team in the same conference as teams like Hawaii, San Jose State, and UTEP.
The Mountain West reportedly was also exploring adding Toledo, but the Rockets’ interest appears to have lessened.
Pac-12/Mountain West Lawsuit
Several outlets published stories recently about the Pac-12 filing a lawsuit against the Mountain West over its poaching penalties. That number will be more than $50 million depending on how many schools end up going from the Mountain West to the Pac-12.
Those fees are on top of the $17 million per school that the soon-to-be Pac-12 members will have to pay for leaving the Mountain West, though the Pac-12 will cover some or all of that.
The poaching penalties were part of the scheduling alliance that the Pac-12 and Mountain West made for this season.
The Pac-12’s argument is it’s an antitrust issue. The conference allegedly is claiming it had no choice but to agree to that deal because most of the conference’s teams had left and the league had only a few months to come up with a schedule for the 2024 season.
Pac-12 & Mountain West Don’t Extend Scheduling Arrangement Past 2024
The Mountain West and Pac-12 didn’t sign off on a deal to continue their scheduling agreement past this season. The deadline to do so was Sept. 1.
Oregon State and Washington State made a scheduling deal with the Mountain West for this year. Mountain West teams scheduled seven games against league opponents with another being against either WSU or OSU in 2024. Those two programs aren’t eligible for the Mountain West Championship.
For one year of this arrangement, the two schools are paying the Mountain West $14 million, according to Yahoo Sports.
Which Teams Left The Pac-12?
USC, UCLA, Oregon, and Washington decided to go to the Big Ten, and Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State, and Utah chose to head to the Big 12.
Then news broke that Cal and Stanford would be going to the ACC. That leaves just two teams left in the Pac-12.
Who Is In The Pac-2?
Washington State and Oregon State are the only programs remaining in the Pac-12. Some began calling them the Pac-2.
When Cal, Stanford, WSU, and OSU were the only teams left in the Pac-12, people referred to them as the Pac-4. However, Stanford and Cal are now in the ACC.
While OSU and WSU were facing an unclear future, both teams saw some success last year and were both ranked in the AP Top 25 at one point.
SMU, Stanford, And Cal Head To ACC
SMU, Stanford, and Cal became members of the ACC beginning in 2024.
However, all three schools reportedly won’t receive full ACC revenue shares for nine years.
Clemson & FSU’s ACC Lawsuits
After the Pac-12 imploded, some have begun to wonder if the same would happen to the ACC.
Clemson and Florida State have both sued the ACC in recent months over matters related to the league’s grant of rights.
Florida State has reportedly expressed frustration with the ACC’s media deal for months, saying FSU isn’t making enough to keep up with SEC and Big Ten programs also seeking to win national championships.
For example, the nine FBS leagues recently signed off on a six-year College Football Playoff arrangement through 2031 that would give the Big Ten and SEC nearly twice as much money as the ACC and Big 12.
Florida State has argued the ACC has mismanaged its TV agreement with ESPN, The Athletic reported. FSU is also seeking for a court in Florida to rule whether the ACC’s grant of rights is legitimate.
Clemson is questioning the legitimacy of the ACC’s grant of rights when it comes to a school leaving the conference.
Sports media experts have argued Clemson and Florida State’s cases against the ACC aren’t very strong, which could prevent the conference from dissolving anytime soon. However, that doesn’t mean it isn’t impossible.
Those schools could come up with the financial means to separate from the ACC, or perhaps all parties involved come to an amicable solution which means those two programs can seek a new conference.
But if that did happen, the ACC would be losing arguably its two most valuable members when it comes to college football. And like what happened with the Pac-12, some big-name schools leaving could lead to several others wanting out as well.
A judge reportedly decided to grant a temporary restraining order against North Carolina’s board of trustees. That means the board can’t go over things like finances or conference realignment in a closed session.
For the sake of the Group of Five, if the ACC were to completely dissolve, it’s not impossible some programs are left behind by the power leagues. Perhaps the AAC or the Sun Belt figure out an arrangement with leftover ACC teams.
AAC/Pac-12 Potential Moves
The American Athletic Conference was reportedly interested in adding the remaining Pac-12 schools, but then the AAC stopped considering those moves.
This is where it gets interesting for Group of Five fans. The AAC has expressed disapproval of the G5 label, and additions like that would’ve certainly helped the conference position itself as the next-highest league in many aspects after the Big Ten, SEC, Big 12, and ACC.
While the American recently lost UCF, Cincinnati, and Houston to the Big 12, the teams that joined the AAC last year were UTSA, FAU, North Texas, Rice, UAB, and Charlotte. The AAC presidents also voted to add Army as a football-only member.
Pac-12 2024 Conference Realignment News
The Mountain West announced the league is bringing in UTEP, which is currently a member of Conference USA and was believed by some to be a potential target for the Pac-12.
UTEP is joining a conference that’s stronger in terms of on-the-field performance.
And that’s not including the five teams which will be members of the Pac-12 in two years. For example, Air Force reached the AP Top 25 as recently as last season, and UNLV has appeared in the CFP rankings this season.
There’s also familiarity with the Miners and the other current Mountain West teams, as UTEP played against all of those programs while in the Western Athletic Conference.
UTEP’s decision appears to be financially sound as well. The money made from the Mountain West’s TV deal could be more than four times as much as UTEP is making with Conference USA’s. That’s going off of the current numbers of those deals, and that could of course end up changing with so many teams leaving the Mountain West, which has a TV deal that will reportedly expire after next season.
UTEP’s move could also end up making sense from a travel standpoint as well. While Texas State announced its commitment to the Sun Belt, reports have indicated Tarleton State might also end up going to the MW, so that could be another team in the state of Texas. Currently only one other CUSA team is in the Lone Star State (Sam Houston).
UTEP will become a member of the Mountain West on July 1, 2026. The Miners’ football team will begin Mountain West play during the 2026 season.
Hawaii announced it will become a full-time Mountain West member in 2026, giving the league the minimum eight members it needed.
Pac-12/Sun Belt Scheduling Alliance?
The presidents of Sun Belt Conference schools met during last season to go over potential plans by Oregon State and Washington State that would include a scheduling alliance between the Sun Belt and those two schools, according to Yahoo Sports.
However, those discussions were reportedly short. The Sun Belt’s leaders believed there was too much travel and not enough financial gain possible with an arrangement like that.
CFP’s Move To 5+7 Format Impacting G5 Teams
The College Football Playoff changed its format for 2024.
The CFP Board of Managers unanimously decided to alter the setup for the playoff. Now, the five highest-ranked conference title winners will automatically qualify, and the next seven highest-ranked teams will make up the rest of the field.
Previously, the six highest-ranked conference champions would make it. Then the next-highest ranked six teams would consist of the rest of the field.
This means at least one Group of Five team will still make the CFP. The previous rules would’ve guaranteed spots for at least two G5 programs, but it was unlikely that those rules were going to stand after most of the Pac-12’s members departed for other leagues.
G5 representatives on the CFP Board of Managers included Western Kentucky President Tim Caboni (Conference USA), Tulane President Michael Fitts (AAC), Troy President Jack Hawkins (Sun Belt), Buffalo President Satish Tripathi (MAC), and UNLV President Keith Whitfield (Mountain West).
“This is a very logical adjustment for the College Football Playoff based on the evolution of our conference structures since the board first adopted this new format in September 2022,” Mark Keenum, Mississippi State President and Chair of the CFP Board of Managers, said in a press release. “I know this change will also be well received by student-athletes, coaches and fans. We all will be pleased to see this new format come to life on the field this postseason.”
College Football Playoff Rules
This year is the CFP’s first season of 12 teams making the playoffs.
Despite the 5+7 change, no specific conference will have an automatic qualifier, and there will be no maximum for a number of teams from any one conference.
With this new format, the five highest-ranked conference champions will automatically receive a CFP berth and the four highest-ranked conference title winners will have a bye during the first round. The next eight teams will be seeded Nos. 5-12, and the higher-seeded programs will host.
Then the quarterfinals and semifinals will be made up of the New Year’s Six bowls, and the national championship will keep being played at a neutral site.
Can A Pac-12 Team Make The College Football Playoff?
Washington State and Oregon State, the two remaining Pac-12 teams in 2024, still can earn a spot in the CFP. However, that path will be difficult without a chance to automatically qualify with a conference championship.
Most of the Pac-12’s members are playing in other Power Four conferences this season. OSU and WSU agreed to a scheduling alliance with the Mountain West for 2024. Oregon State and Washington State won’t be eligible for the Mountain West’s conference title.
Mountain West Conference Media Deal
The Mountain West agreed to a $270 million media rights deal in 2020 with CBS and FOX, according to The Athletic. It would end after the 2025-26 season. Teams are scheduled to be paid $4 million per year.
